At St. John’s, an interview is optional—but if you’re able to take the time for it, it’s an option well worth taking. If you visit campus, you can always add an interview to your visit, and if you’re not able to visit, you can always interview by Skype or even by phone. An interview only takes about half an hour, and it can be a great addition to your application. More than anything else, an interview is simply a conversation, and here at St. John’s, we love conversations!

An interview gives you a chance to do a few things. Firstly, it gives the admissions committee a chance to get to know you a little better. Here at St. John’s, we read your application holistically; we’re less interested in test scores and more interested in who you are as a person and how you’ll fit our unique curriculum and community. Along with the essay, the interview is a great chance to spotlight various facets of who you are and who you’d be at St. John’s, inside and outside the classroom.

In addition, interviews are a great chance for you to get your questions answered by an admissions counselor. We don’t expect you to prepare questions, but don’t be afraid to ask us any questions that have been on your mind, or any questions that you think of during the course of the conversation. Questions are a good thing here, and we’re always happy to help you with them!

If you’re nervous about scheduling an interview, remember that we’re not going to be asking you trick questions, or giving you some kind of cross-examination. We want to use the interview to get to know you a little better and to highlight some cool things about you for the rest of the admissions committee. To prepare for an interview, just think about the things you’d like underlined or emphasized about you as part of your application, why you’re interested in St. John’s, and how you see yourself potentially fitting in as a member of the St. John’s community.

For us, of course, it’s important that you come in with at least some sense of our unique academic program. With that said, we don’t expect you to be a master of the program, and questions are welcome! If you get into the interview and worry that there’s something about the college or Program that you don’t understand well enough, definitely ask! It shows your interviewer that you’re exploring the college and looking to understand it, and that’s always a good thing.